Can-testing machine



w. E. sumas.

CAN TESTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-31,1920. I 1,378,215D Patented May' 17, 192.1.

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W-m/ INVENTOR w, E. BURNS. CAN TESTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED .IAN- SI, 1920.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. j

WILFORD E. BURNS. 0F SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO MAX J'.BRAN- DENSTEIN, MANFRED BRANDENSTEIN, AND EDWARD BRANDENSTEIN, OF SANFRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A FIRM DOING BUSINESS AS M. J'. BRANDENSTEIN &C0.

CAN-TESTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented DIay 17, 1921,

Application led January 31, 1920. Serial No. 355,362.

To all Hwm. if may concern Bc. it known that I, VILFORD E. BURNS, acitizen ofthe nited States. and a resident of the city and county of SauFrancisco' and State of California, have invented a new and usefulGan-Testing Machine, of which `the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for testing the tightness of thejoints in a can.

An'object of the invention is to provide a machine for determiningwhether or not, the joints of cans are tight, before the contents of thecans are placed in them.

T he invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, someof which, with the foregoing will be set forth in the followingdescription of the preferred form of my invention which is illustratedin the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. Itis to be understood that I do not limit myself to the showing made bythe said dra-wings and description, as I may adopt variations of thepreferred form within the scope of my invention as set forth in theclaims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure l is a vertical sectional view through the middle of the machine.Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the middle of the machine,the plane of section being at right angles to that of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 isa side elevation of the machine. Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view ona larger scale of the upper portion of the machine. Fig. 5 is anelevation, partly in diagram 'of the automatic switch forming partl ofthe mechanism.

Before the contents are placed in metallic containers it is desirable toascertain if the `seamed and soldered joints of the containers areperfectly tight, so that defective containers may be rejected. Ingeneral terms, theV testing machine of my invention comprises a tankadapted to contain water, a

carriage into which the can to be tested maybe thrust by the operator,means for lowering the carriage lnto the, tank to immerse the can..areservoir of air under pressure, means acting automatically andy in timewith the downward movement of the carriage for closing the fillingopening in the can and connecting the can with the air reservoir so thatprior to immersion there is a pressure within the can greater than themaximum pressure exerted on the can by the water, mea-ns forautomatically lighting the tank `from below so that the operator can seebubbles arising from a defective can and means acting in time with theliftlng of the carriage for-allowing the air under pressure to exhaustfrom the can.

My testing machine comprises a tank 2 inclosed and supported in asuitable frame 3, vertical side members 4 of which, extend upwardly toprovide a. mounting for the op. erating mechanism. On cross beams 6 and7, and directly over the center of the tank 1S arranged a cylinder 8setinv suitable heads 9 and 11. A rod 12 fitted with piston 13 isslidably mounted in thecylinder, the rod projecting from the cylinderthrough a stuffing box 14 in the. lower'head 9. A valve box 16 is fixedon one ofthe side members 4, and is formed withV an air chamber 17 inwhich a slide valve 18 is adapted to be reciprocated to cover or uncoverpassages 26 connects the passage 21 to the passage- 27 formed inthelower cylinder head and opening into the cylinder below the piston. Thevalve box is also provided with an exhaust passage 28 connecting the airchamber 17 with the passage 29 which, passes through' the valve box andopens at both ends into the atmosphere. Thus, by movement of the` slidevalve 18 upwardly, air under pressure is admitted below the piston 13todrive it upwardly in the cylinder, and a passage opened to allow. theairabove the piston to escape. Dlownward movement o f the slide, valveopens the passage for -theair below the piston to escape and at thesametime connects the proper passages to allow air under pressure' to enterthe cylinder above the Apiston to limpel it downwardly..

The valve rod 31 is fixe-d at its outer end to the slide 32, slidablymounted in a bracket 33 fixed on the frame 4. The lower end of the slideis pivotally connectedto the rod 34. pivoted to the control lever 36pivoted on the frame. The control lever is formed with handles 37, oneat eachrextremity, and provides means whereby an operator on either sideof the machine may manually initiate the action of the apparatus.

Fixed on the lower end of' the piston rod 12 is the carriage in whichthe canv to be tested is placed. The carriage comprises two square hoops38 connected on the inside by slats 39 within which the can .41,

The position and proportion of the parts is such that when the carriageis in its upper position, the wheels rest on the upper end of thetracks, supporting the plates as shown inl Figrl. In this position theplates form platforms or rests of' use in facilitating the placing ofthe cans in and withdrawing v them rom the carriage. As the carriage islowered into the tank, the engagement of the rollers with the trackforces the plates into a vertical position as shown in the dottedlinesnear the bottom of Fig. 1 holding the can securely in the carriage.The plate 43 is provided with a passage 49 connected by flexible hose 51with pipe 52 fixedly held in the arm 53 projecting from the carriage andslidably mounted in the cross beams 6 and 7. The top of the pipe isconnected by flexible conductor 54 with a source ofl air under lowpressure, say about 12 pounds. Conveniently such low pressure air may betaken from the high pressure tank through a reducing valve of knownstructure. The opening of the passage 49 upon the face of the plate 43is surrounded by a gasket 56 adapted, when the plate rises to verticalposition, to engage about the filling neck 57 of the can and establish asealed connection between the can and the low pressure air conductors.This connection is established immediately following the initialdownward movement of the carriage 62 into the and is maintained untilthe carriage is again .near the upper position.

. Means are provided for closing the low pressure conductors to thepassage of air while the carriage is in and adjacent to its upperposition, and for openingl the conductors to thepassage of' air tocreate a pressure withinpltheycan.just prior to its immersion andcontinuinguntil it is about to leave the wateinx'. jlve'j61, Fig. 4,with vent here arranged in the pipe 52 andi-1s apted' to be`moved by alever includingtwof spring pressed fingers 63 and Stops-:166 and 67 arearranged on the sideframe member 4 for actuating the valve as follows:In tlie position of parts shown in Fig. 2, the valve is closed, thepassage below the valve being in communication with the atmospherethrough the vent 62. Shortly following the beginning of the downwardstroke of the carriage, it being remembered that the pipe 52 is fixed tothe carriage and moves with it, the finger 63 engages the stop 66,operating the valve to close the vent and open a passage to permit airto flow through the conductors into the can, the engagement of thegasket 56 with the filling neck of the can having just previouslyoccurred. ,As the carriage and pipe 52 near the bottom of their strokethe spring pressed finger 64 which is now on the outside snaps past thestop 67, but on the upstroke is operated by the stop to close thel valveand open, throughthe vent 62, communication between the conductors belowthe valve and the atmosphere. By the time the plate 43 falls anduncovers the filling opening of the can the air pressure in the can hasdropped to about' that of the atmosphere, whatever air under pressurethere is in the can at this time escaping through the uncovered fillingopening. Near the end of theeupward stroke the finger 63 vsnaps past thestop 66, and the parts are again in the first position as shown in Fig.2.

Means are provided for `cushioning the stroke at both ends so that thecarriage is brought to rest quietly and without jar or noise in bothupper and lower positions. Slidably mounted in bearings on thev crossbeams 6 and 7 lis a rod 68. The upper bearing comprises blocks 69resiliently pressed together and against the rod by springs 71interposed between the blocks and the bolt 72 passing through the blocksand the housing 73. Thus a regulable fricf tional resistance to thesliding of the rod 68 is provided which prevents movement ofthe rodexcept as actuated Vby superior force. Arms 74 and-76 are fixed on therod, and areA provided with apertures through which the pipe 52 looselypasses. The position'of the arms xis such that near the end of theupward stroke of thev carriage and pipe 52 the upper endof' the valve 61engages the arm 74' and carries the rod 68 upwardly a short distance.Near the end of the downward'stroke, the lower arm 76 is engaged b thelower end of the valve or by a collar 7 fixed on the'pipe 52 and the rod68 is carried downwardly 'a short distance. Mounted for pivotal movementon the slide 32 isa lever arm 78, pivotally connected at one end with-therod 68, and at the other end with a rod 79, to which is fixed aplunger 81 loosely fitting the passage 29 through which, it will beremembered, the exhaust from the cylinder 8 is discharged. When thelever 36 is moved to lower the slide valve 18, to allow air underressure to enter the top of the cylinder the lever 78 pivots about itsconnec- 77 engages the arm 76, and moves the rod 68 downwardly. The arm78 then pivots about its connection on the slide 32, movingl the plunger'81 upwardly to cover the eX- haust passage 28. The remaining air underthe piston 13 and in the passages is thus trapped, slowly escaping pastthe loosely fitting plunger 81, and cushioning the end of the stroke..When the lever 36 is moved to initiate the upward stroke of the piston13, the lever 78 is actuated to push up the plunger 81 above the outeropening of the passage 28, and then, near the end of the upward stroke,with movement of the rod 68, is actuated to pull down the plunger 81 totrap the air escaping from the upper end of. th'e cylinder 8, cushioningthe end of' the stroke as before.

Means are provided for illuminating thetank during the immersion of thecan so that the operatorA can more clearly see the low the plate so thatthe light rays are,

thrown' upwardly through the water of the tank. Thelamp is connected inseries to circuit 86, one side of the circuit being connected to thepower line 87, and the other side of the power'line and the other sideof circuit 86 being connected to spaced con- `tact ribs 88 arranged onand insulated from the frame member 4 in position to be engaged bycontact 89 mounted on and insulated, from the collar 77. Near the end ofthe downward stroke of the carriage the Contact 89 engages between theribs 88, closing 'the circuit 86 therethrough and lighting the `lampuntil the contact leaves the ribs on the upward stroke of the carriage.

I claim:

1. A can testing machine comprising a tank, a carriage for the can to betested, means for lowering and raising said carriage in-to and out ofsaid tank, and means operated by said carriage during its downwardmovement for introducing into the can in said carriage air underpressure.

2. A can testin machine comprising a tank, a carriage or the can to betested, means for lowering and raising said carriage into and out ofsaid tank, a conductor for air under pressure, a valve in said conductorand means operated automatically during the downward movement of saidcarriage for eistablishing a connection between said conductor and saidcan and for turning Said valve to permit air under pressure to ll saidcan.

3. A can testing. machine comprising a tank, a carriage for the can tobe tested, means for lowering and raising said carriage into and out ofsaid tank, and means operated automatically during the downward movementof said carriage for introducing into the can in said carriage air underpres-` sure, and during the upward movement of said carriage forreleasing the pressure in said can.

' 4. A can testing machine comprising a tank adapted to contain aquantity of liquid, a carriage for the can to be tested, means' `formoving the carriage to immerse the can in the liquid and to lift the canabove the liquid, and automatically operated means for maintaining airunder pressure within the can'during the period of immersion.

5. A can testing machine Vcomprising a tank adapted to containa quantityof liquid, a carriage for the can to be tested, means for moving thecarriage -to immerse the can in the liquid and to lift the can above theliquid, automatically operated means for maintaining air under pressurewithin the can during the period of immersion and means for illuminatingthe liquid in the tank during the period of immersion.

6. A can testing machine comprising a tank adapted to containraquantityof liquid, a carriage for the can to be tested, means formovin-g the carriage to immerse the can in the liquid, a plate pivotedto said carriageA and having a passage therein adapted to be registeredwith the filling openingA of said. can, a conductor for air underpressure connected to said plate and opening into said passage, a valvein said conductor, means for moving said plate to register said passage'with said filling opening prior to the period of immersion, and meansfor opening saidvalve to permit air under pressure to fill said cansubsequent to the movement of said plate. A 7. A can testing machlnecomprislng 'a" tank, a carriage for the can to be tested, means forlowerinor and raising said carriage into and out of said tank, a platepivoted to said carriage and having a passage therein ing opening ofsaid can, a 'cam track arranged to move said plate to register saidpassage with said filling opening during the downward ino-vement of saidcarriage, and means for introducing `air under pressurel into saidpassage during the period of such registration.

9. A can .testin machine comprising a tank, a carriage or the can to betested, means for lowering and raising said carriage into and out ofsaid tank, a plate pivoted to 5 said carriage and having a passagetherein adapted to be registered with the filling opening of said can, asecond plate pivoted to said carriage and adapted to engage theoppositel end of said can, said plates forming loading and unloadingplatforms for said carriage in its upper position, means operative withthe' downward movement of said carriage for moving said plates intoengagement with said can, and means for introducing air under pressureinto said passage to fill said can during said downward Inovement.

10. A can testinginachine ,comprising a tank, a carriage for the can tobe tested;-

means for lowering and raising said carriage into and out of said tank,a plate pivoted to said carriage and having a passage therein adapted tobe registered with the filling opening of said can, a second platepivoted to said carriage and `adapted to engage the opposite end of saidcan, said plates forming loading and unloading platforms for saidcarriage in its upper position, a cam track arranged to move each plateinto engagement with said cam during the downward movement of saidcarriage, a conductor for airl underpressure connected to said firstplate and opening into said passage,'and means operated during thedownward movement of the carriage ,for permiting air to flow throughsaid conductorv into said can and during the upward movement of thecarriage for permitting said air to escape vfrom said can. p 40 11. Acan testing machine, comprising a tank adapted to contain a liquid, acarriage for the can to be tested, a cylinder, a piston and piston rodin said cylinder and connected to said carriage, manually controlledmeans .for admitting air under pressure into oneend of said cylinder tomove said carriage into said tank, automatically operating means fortrapping air in the opposlte end of the cylinder to cushion the end ofthe v stroke, and means for introducing air under A pressure into saidcan V during said stroke.

12. A 'can testing machine, comprising a `tank adapted to containaliquid, a carriage for the can to-be tested, a cylinder, a piston andpiston rod in said cylinder and connected to said carriage, manuallycontrolled means for admitting air under pressure into one end of saidcylinder .to move said carriage into saidtank, means for cushioning ,Q0the end of the stroke, andmeans for introdncing airunder pressure intosaid can during`sad stroke. a l

13'. A' can testing machine, comprising a tank adapted to contain a 1iuid,`a carriage for the can to'be tested, a cy inder, a piston andpiston rod in said cylinder and connected to said carriage, manuallycontrolled means for admitting air under pressure into one end of saidcylinder tor move said cari riage into said tank, means .for cushioningthe end of the stroke, a plate pivoted to said carriage and having apassage therein adapted to be registered with the filling opening ofsaid can, aconductor for air underpressure connected to said plate andopening into said passage, means operative during the movement of saidcarriage for moving said plate to register said passage with saidfilling opening, 'and means operative during the movement of saidcarriage Jfor permitting air to flow through said conductor into saidcan.

14. A control mechanism for a fluid pressure operated piston comprisinga cylinder in which said piston slides, a valve box -formed 'with an airchamber therein, means for introducing air under pressure into said airchamber, means vproviding a passage from each end of the cylinder tosaid'air chamber, means providing an exhaust passagefrom said airchamber, a valve in said air chamber movable to uncover either passageto said cylinder and to place the other `passage in communication Withsaid exhaust passage, a manually controlled slide for moving saidvalve,A a lever pivoted on said slide, means for blocking said exhaustpassage connected to one end of said lever and normally lying to oneside of said passage, and means operating in time with the movement ofsaid piston for moving said lever about its pivot on said slide to movesaid blocking means across said exhaust passage.

15. A control mechanismfona fluid pressure operated piston comprising acylinder inwhich said. piston slides, a valve bo formed with an airchamber therein, means for introducing air under pressure into said airchamber, means providing a passage from each end of the cylinder to saidair 110 chamber, means providing an exhaust passage from said airchamber, a valve in said air chamber movable to uncover either pas sageto said cylinder and to place the other i passage in communication withsaid exhaust 1115 passage, a slide for moving said valve, a leverpivoted on said slide, means for blocking said exhaust passage connectedto one end of said lever and normally l ing to one side of said passage,a rod slidab y arranged 12 0 adjacent said cylinder and pivotallyconnected to the other end of said lever, and means for moving said rodwith said iston near the end of each stroke to turn sai lever about itsvpivot on said 'slide to move said y125 blocking means across saidexhaust passage.

16. A control mechanism for a Huid ressure operated piston comprising acylinder in which said piston slides, a valve box formed with an airchamber therein, means for introducing air under pressure into said,airv chamber, means providing a passage from each end of thecylinder tosaid air chamber, means providing an exhaust passage from said Aairchamber, a valve in said ,air chamber movable to uncover either pasvsage to said cylinder and to place the other passage in communicationWith said exhaust passage, a slide for moving said valve, a

lever pivoted on said slide, means for blocking said exhaust passageconnected to' one end of said lever` and normally lying to one vside ofsaidpassage,y a rodvslidably arranged adjacent said cylinder andpivotally connected to the other end of said lever, means for movingsaid rod with said piston near the end of each stroke to turn said leverabout its pivot on said slide to move said blocking means across saidexhaustI passage, andmanually controlled means for moving said slide t0operate said valve and to move said lever about its pivot on said rod tomove said blocking means clear of said exhaust passage.

In testimon whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at an Francisco,California, this 21st day of January 1920.

-WILFORD E. BURNS.

